Sorry for dragging up an old topic, but now that the season is getting closer, I think we may start hearing more about this again.

I was angry when I read it in June, and I'm still ticked off. I thought about it again yesterday for the first time in a while, because I read the memo that I can't take my regular purse with me when I take some 15 year old boys to training camp next week. That's right -- the no purse rule is in effect for sitting outside in the bleachers at 8:00 a.m.

I started digging through my purses looking for something compliant, and I don't have a thing! The smallest bag I own, which is tiny and barely fits my phone, keys, and a lip gloss is 1/2 inch too long. Of course I'm going to try to use it next week and see what they say, but 4.5 X 6.5 is ridiculously small. Heck, my wallets are too big!

I spent some time shopping on-line today, and I wasn't able to find anything with a strap that would work. I'm sure everything will be OK though, because the NFL is poised to make hundreds of thousands of dollars selling cheap plastic bags for us to replace all our logo items we bought from them that are now prohibited. Yes, I have 4 different Texans gameday purses. All official. All banned.

I did write the Texans and the NFL. I know they won't change anything, but it felt good to get it off my chest. I think the thing that really bugs me the most is the NFL has shown that they really didn't think about their huge female fan base and the millions of dollars a year we spend on their product. I understand why they say they did what they did (although I think it was financial too), I just think they could have been a little more reasonable when they set their size restriction.

OK...rant over. Can you just see the drama outside the stadium next month from the thousands of people that don't really pay attention to stuff like this?

And seriously - $10 for the privilege of a piece of junk that obviously costs the NFL $0.25 to produce.

Give them out for free, and perhaps people will believe you're trying to protect the fans rather than gouge them.

Asshats.

Edit: And to make things even worse, now because I've been Googling stupid NFL see through bags, the intelligent advertising banners have decided that I would like an advert about Yves Saint Lauren handbags.

Sitting in my big comfy leather easy-chair with 56" HD and DVR in front of me is becoming more and more appealing with each passing year.

I love going to games, but between the ever-increasing expenses and now on-going hassles to go to games, I am starting to be priced out and pissed off about dealing with any of it.

I gave up my season tickets last year. I might go to a game or two a season, but I much prefer waking up..doing some stuff around the house...having the wife cook some gameday meal like here famous nachos...Having reasonably priced beverages a few steps away...60 inches of fun......ect ect....

And then when the game is over the most traffic I face if I want to go somewhere is some parked cars on the street in my culdesac......Or I can just have grown up time with the wife...

Yeah...I LOVE my at home game day experience.

NFL is going to have to do more than add a big screen with the RZ channel to get me to want to come to more games.

Been watching at home since right after the Rosencopter game. Honestly can't say I regret giving up my PSLs and tix. I save a lot of money, I have good beer right next to my couch, I eat great food, and I have no other fans to deal with either in game or in the parking lot. And I can use whatever bag I want, carry whatever I want in my pockets, and no one searches me.

It's great.

__________________Hey O'Brien: "How do you tell a guy who is used to catching 80 balls a year that he was going to catch 40?"... You jackass.

I gave up my season tickets last year. I might go to a game or two a season, but I much prefer waking up..doing some stuff around the house...having the wife cook some gameday meal like here famous nachos...Having reasonably priced beverages a few steps away...60 inches of fun......ect ect....

And then when the game is over the most traffic I face if I want to go somewhere is some parked cars on the street in my culdesac......Or I can just have grown up time with the wife...

Yeah...I LOVE my at home game day experience.

NFL is going to have to do more than add a big screen with the RZ channel to get me to want to come to more games.

Im roughly the same way. I split season tickets and go to 3-4 games.

P.S. Let me know when you're wife makes some of those nachos so we can come try them.

This has as much to do with safety of the crowd as red light cameras have to do with stopping accidents. It might be about the appearance of safety but not actual safety. And of course, how convenient that they happen to have a bag that you can purchase.

And the pointless part is the real troublemakers and terrorists will always find a way. Has the NFL never heard of the shoe bomber?

I like going once in a blue moon, especially when I get free tix, but most weeks, I'm happy as a frog on a lily pad sitting in front of my Sony 60" LCD and seeing it all in beautiful HD. No gas money, no drunk idiots running into my car, no $6 beer and $3.50 bottled water, no waiting in lines, no over-priced concessions.

Maybe McNair, Godell, et al should read a book called the Goose that laid the golden egg.

I can tell you from experience that by not allowing bags/purses into the
stadium reduces wait times for those in the back waiting to get in, eliminates any risk of someone attempting to bring in alcohol/drugs

now it doesn't mean fans won't try

I had one guy try to pull the wool over my eyes, noticed a large bulge
and questioned what it was..he proceeded to pull out several liquor
bottles which he was attempting to bring in and was forced to dump
out before he was allowed entry

but glad to see the NFL taking initiative to make games more fan friendly

Do you think that there is a chance that because of the new safer bags, that security presence will be lower, and the guards who are on duty, will check the bags less than before when they had to look through a rucksack?

Looking at the official NFL approved bags they're selling - it would be incredible easy to sticky tape a joint/bag of coke behind that big NFL/team logo, so that anything less than a glance at the contents of the bag wouldn't spot it.

I know it also doesn't affect you guys as much, but having gone to watch football up in Seattle people might be underestimating the value of being able to take a waterproof rucksack to the game for ponchos/rainjackets when the inevitable mid game downpour on the exposed section of the stadium begins.

I'm wondering who the genius is that determined 4.5 X 6.5 was the largest purse allowed? Did they measure a Kotex pad or something? Is there research that says people smuggle bombs in a 6 X 8 bag, but they don't fit in a 4.5 X 6.5 bag? It just seems like such an arbitrary set of numbers. Even 6 X 8 would make looking for something compliant a LOT easier.

I'm going to try my luck with an ever-so-slightly oversized purse at training camp next week. The smallest thing I have is 4.5 X 7.5 and it's tiny. It will hold my keys, phone, license, credit card, and cash, but nothing else. I'll be interested to see if they're out there with a ruler.

I'm not ready to give up tickets, but I have to admit the more it becomes a hassle the less I want to go. If the NFL wants to get women and children out of their stadiums this is a step in the right direction.